Your summer reading programs just got better! A young reader from your library may be the lucky recipient of one of the 10 – $529 College SAVE scholarships to be given to North Dakota children when they participate in the College SAVE Summer Reading Champions Campaign in 2023.

The North Dakota State Library is partnering with Bank of North Dakota (BND) which administers College SAVE, the state’s 529 college savings plan, to provide one more incentive for your eager readers when they complete your summer reading program.

How Scholarships will be selected

• At the end of the summer, the library needs to submit the names and contact information of participants who met the reading goals to the ND State Library.
• The State Library will organize the names into regions and Bank of North Dakota (BND) will select at least one recipient from each region.
• BND will provide a media release template for your library to announce the $529 scholarship recipient if they participate in your summer reading program.

What Bank of North Dakota will do

• Provide 10 – $529 College SAVE scholarships statewide to be used in an existing or new College SAVE account.
• Provide a link to a $25 gift certificate to be used for a new College SAVE account or $10 for an existing College SAVE account for each of your readers who complete your summer reading program.
• Provide posters to announce the Summer Reading Champions program. They are ordered when the library registers.
• Provide bookmarks and parent information cards for each of your summer reading program participants at the beginning of summer.
• Provide social media posts that will be shared if you have a social media presence.

What the ND State Library will do

• Collect the names of your readers who met your library’s reading goals. A template is available.
• Organize them into regions and select the recipients of the 10 scholarships with Bank of North Dakota.
• Notify local libraries of the winner’s names and provide the statewide media release which is distributed by Bank of North Dakota.

What you need to do

• Register for College SAVE Summer Reading Champions Campaign by Friday, May 5, 2023.
• You need to provide the name of your Library, contact information, mailing address and approximate number of summer reading participants along with your preferred social media presence.
• Distribute the $25/$10 gift certificate to every reading champion who meets the reading goals. You will print and/or share the link BND sends to you. No worries on the library’s end to establish if it is a new or existing account! It will be one certificate and BND will apply the correct amount.
• Submit their names by September 8, 2023 to the ND State Library at awhitehorn@nd.gov. A template is provided.
• BND will announce winner by Friday, October 13, 2023.

Questions?

College SAVE Plan – James Barnhardt, Director
jbarnhardt@nd.gov ○ 701-328-5882

ND State Library – Alexis Whitehorn, Literacy Specialist
awhitehorn@nd.gov ○ 701-328-4663